Hand truck



Sept. 1, 1925.

E. J. BRYAN HAND TRUCK Fil ed April '14,

2 Sheets-She a 2 WITN E585 Patented Sept. 1, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT orr EDGAR J. BRYAN, or nrvnnsrnn,

CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNO'R OF ONE-SIXTH TC) LEONARD DIFANI, ONE-THIRD ToANDREW nrranr, AND onnsrxrrr T OAKLEY Monron.

ALL OF RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA.

HAND TRUCK.

Application filed April 14, 192 4. Serial Ne. 706,544,

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, EDGAR J. BRYAN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Riverside, in the county of Riverside and State ofCalifornia, have invented new and useful Hand Trucks,

' is a specification.

' proper distance apart This invention relates to hand trucks.

The object is to provide a truck having gripping jaws for engagingboxes, barrels, kegs, crates, etc, said jaws having a wide range oflateral movement to properly grip and support boxes of different sizes,and having means for adjusting said jaws to the v l where a number ofsuch articles of the same size are to be handled, so as to avoidunnecessary movement of the jaws at each operation.

Another object is to provide a truck with gripping jaws which have asweeping movement across the floor toward each other when an article isbeing picked up, inorder that the active ends of the jaws may grip thelower face of said article.

A further object is jaws which are caused to automatically enthe loadwhen the truck frame is tilted in a rearward directiom after pressure bythe foot of the operator has been imparted to a pedal mounted on thtruck axle for holding the jaws to the floor. v

A final object is to provide hand-operated means for adjusting the jawscloser together or wider apart and which may be quickly and easilyreleased to permit the jaws to separate and to release the load, th saidhand-operated means and the foot pedal bee ing within easy reach of theoperator behind the truck when the same is in upstanding position, aswhen loading.

A full and complete understanding of the invention may be obtained froma consideration of the following detailed description, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings forming a part of thisspecification, it being understood that while the drawings show apractical form of the invention, the latter is not to be confined tostrict conformity with the showing thereof, but may b changed ormodified, so long as such changes or modifications mark no materialdeparture from the salient features of the invention, as specificallypointed out in the appended claims.

of which the following erably constructed of to provide gripping.

' truck is lying flat similar refercorrespond ng figures In thedrawings, in which ence characters designate parts throughout theseveral Figure 1 is a front elevation showing the gripping jaws extendedto. their maximum capacity, V i F igure 2 is a similar View showingthejaws in their innermost positions Figure 3 is a rear perspective View ofthe improved truck slightly tilted in a rearward direction U I Figure 4is a vertical, longitudinal section through the same, the normalposition being shown in dotted lines; Y

Figure 5 is a detail on the line 55of Figure 4; and c Figure 6 is adetail'sectional view illustrating the means for holding the jawadjusting bar in adjustedposition.

Referring to the drawings, there is illustrated a truck constructed inaccordance with the present lnventlon and comprising a frame ofjtheusual proportions and pref. angle iron. The spaced, longitudinal siderails 1 are connected at oneend by a cross to the other or upper endsanother'cross rail 2 oins'lthe rails 1, the projecting portions Upperand lower intermediate cross bars 3 are also connected to the rails 1,the sev- "eral cross members 2, 2 and 3 being preferably equally spacedapart and forming a strong and rigid structure to support the loadswhichmay be carried by the truck.

Triangular brackets 4 are preferably bolted or riveted to th 'lower endsof the rails 1, said brackets having attaching portions and converging,rearwardlyextending arms terminating in bearings 5, which are spacedsomewhat in rear of the frame and also spaced a short distance fromthe'lower cross rail 2 orfoot of the truck, so that, when the truck isstood on end, in a well known manner, th truck assumes a verticalposition with the wheels and the foot rest mg on the supporting surfaceas shown in dotted lines, Fig. 4, n

The axle 6 is rotatably mounted in the bearings 5 and is of a length toproject beyond the'same, wheels 7, of ordinary con- 'struction, beingloosely mounted on said sectional View taken rail 2 constituting thefoot of the truck frame and adjacent of" the latter serving as handleswhen the upon the ground or floor,

' tures,

shaft with the hubs 8 abutting the inner ends of said bearings. 'One ofthe wheels, preferably the left hand one, as viewed from the rear, isheld against longitudinal movement along the axle by a cotter pin 9,while the other wheels 7 is similarly held by a sleeve 10 secured to theaxle by a set screw, and having upstanding arms joined to a plateconstituting a foot pedal 12, which has its upper face roughenedorserrated and which extends forwardly towards the rear side of thetruck frame:

Sockets 13 are secured, by means of set screws 14, to the ends of theaxle 6, where the latter project beyond the bearings 5, said socketsabutting against the outer faces of the bearings, to prevent anylongitudinal movement of the loosely mounted axle. The outer ends of thesockets are provided with spaced ears 15 provided with alinedaper= andbetween said ears there is mounted the rearends 16 of gripping jawsformed of suitable, strong bar iron, the said ends being apertured forthe reception of pivotal bolts17, traversing the ears and permitting thesaid jaws to freely swing about the axis of the bolt 17 and, through themedium of the socket 13 and set screw 14, to partake'of any rockingmovement of the axle when actuated by the foot pedal 12 in a manner tobe explained.

The bar iron comprising the gripping jaws is givena quarter turn just inadvance of the pivotal connection, and the jaws are continued forwardlysubstantially to the front side of the frame, where they are angularlybent toward each other, as at 18, the terminals being preferably taperedand provided on their lower inner edges with rearwardly directed lips"19 for the purpose of engaging beneath a boxjor other package.

At a point adjacent to the angular bend 18, eachjaw is provided with aninwardly directed swiveled eye 20, to whichis con nected the outer endof a link or pull rod 21, the inner end of each rod being formed into aneye 22. The rods normally occupy an inclined position, as shown inFigures 2 and 3 of the drawings, and the lower portions of the sametravel through cut-away portions 1 formed in the side flanges of thelongitudinal rails 1, at the lower ends of the same.

The eyes 22 of the links or pull rods are connected to a pivotal bolt23, which is secured near the lower end of a longitudinally slidable bar24 located at the longitudinal center of the frame, and having suitablebearings through the intermediate cross bars 3. The lower end of the bar24 extends somewhat below or beyond the pivotal connection of the links21, and is adapted at times to rest upon the upper surface of the rearflange of the lower cross bar or foot 2, as shown in Figure 1, while theupper end said dog upwardly of the said bar 24 extends above the upper,intermediate cross bar 3, and is provided at its upper terminal with arearwardly extending One side edge of the bar 24 is provided withserrations or teeth 26 adjacent to its upper end, and where passingthrough the opening in the upper, intermediate cross bar 3, a suitablehousing 27 being secured to the latter to guide the said bar and toprovide means for pivoting a pawl or dog 28, hav ing one end shaped intoa nose for engagement with the teeth 26, as clearly shown in Figure 6,and connected, at its outer end to a longitudinally disposed bar 29slidably mounted in. the intermediate cross bars 3 in spaced relation tothe longitudinal bar 24.

The lower end of the bar 29 is bent to form a foot'piece 30, extendingto rear of the truck and within easy reach of the feet of the operator.I Adjacent to the upper end,

handle 25within easy reach of the operator.

where connected to the dog 28, the bar 29 is provided with a pluralityof holes for the reception of a pin 31, which may thus be adjusted toregulate the compression on a coiled spring 32 surrounding the bar andhearing, at the lower end, upon the lower, intermediate cross bar '3 andat its upper end against a washer'33interposed between the pin and theend of the spring. The normal tendency of the spring is to force the bar29 upwardly and to hold the dog 28 in engagement with the teeth 26 ofthe longitudinal bar 24, and it will be noted that the shape of the saidteeth is such as to permit the bar 24 to be elevated by means of thehandle 25, without the necessity for releasing the dog, but, in order tomove the bar 24 downwardly, it is necessary to depress the foot piece 30against the tension of the spring 32 and torock the engaging end ofoutof engagement. The bar 24 then drops by gravity.

Connected to the forward end of the foot pedal 12, there is a push rod34, extending upwardly and having through a suitable aperture formed inthe lower intermediate cross bar 3, the upper end of said rod normallyabutting the under side of the rear flange of the. upper intermediatecross bar 3, which acts as a stop to arrest the upward movement of therod 34 and the foot pedal 12. A coiled spring 35 surrounds the rod 34,and bears at one end against the flange of the lower cross bar 3, and atthe other end against a washer 36,which is held in adjusted position onthe rod by a pin 37 traversing one of a series of holes formed in therod, the action of the spring 35 serving to normally hold the rod 34 inabut-tingrelation to the cross bar 3 at the top thereof, and to hold thefoot pedal in'elevated position when no pressure is applied to the same.As a result the jaws are a sliding bearing retained in proper positionfor operation and prevented from dropping down when unloaded.

Handles 88 are secured to the undersides of the longitudinal framemembers 1, by means of which the truck may be manipulated to run thetruck up to a load to be transported and for operating the truck duringsuch transportation, and when the truck is laid down upon the floor orground in a horizontal position, the handles 38 serve as legs to supportthe rearend or the trucl r. 1

In the event there is a large number of articles or packages of uniformsize to be handled by the; truck, the latter is run up to one of saidarticles, in the position shown in Figure 3 of the drawings, wherein thetruck is in an upright position with the gripping jaws resting upon thefloor. By depressing the foot 30, the dog 28 is released and theoperator grasping the handle 25, slides the bar 24 either up or down tomake the proper adjustment of the jaws. By pushing down on the handle,the links or rods 21 force the j aws apart and by a reverse movement.the jaws are brought together. This gives a rough adjustment to thejaws toapproximate the width of the packages to bemove'd, and uponreleasing the foot 30 the dog 28 again looks the sliding bar 24 against{any downward movement. The operator now places his foot upon the pedal12 and holds, the same from any movement upwardly, and at the same timerocks or tilts the frame of the truck rearwardly for thefoot pressure on.the pedal prevents the, axle 6 from rocking. This results in holdingthe jawsin contact with the floor, but the rearward movement of thetruck causes a pull on the links 21, which, in turn, cause the jaws tobe drawn inwardlytoward each other by. pivotingthe same on the bolts,17. The lips 19 are'forced beneath the edge of the load, and the latteris caused to fall back against the truck, the result being that theheavier the load the stronger the inward pull on the jaws will be.lVhere a variety of sizes of packages or articles are to be handled, theoperator must shift the position of the sliding bar 2% to adjust thejaws to each of such articles, as will be understood. When the load isto be discharged or unloaded from the truck, the operator simplydepresses the foot member 30, thus releasing the dog 28 and allowing thebar 2% to slide downwardly by the weight of the load on the jaws pullingdownwardly through the links 21.

From the foregoing it will be seen that a simple, strong and durablehand truck has been provided, containing a small number of parts,andgiving a wide range of movementto the ripping or load-supportinglatter may be readily adaws, so, that the justed to difierentsi edloads. The weight of the load serves to cause the gripping ac- 1. A handtruck comprising a frame wheels thereon, an axle ping jaws having theirinner ends mounted on the extended ends of the axle outside the wheels,and a pedal rigidly mountedonthe I axle for controlling the position ofsaid aws.

for the wheels, g

A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted in the frame,wheel's loosely mounted on the axle, the latter having its endsprojecting beyond the wheels, sockets mounted on the extended ends ofthe axle, gripping jaws having their inner ends pivoted in the socketsand extending in front of the frame, and a pedal rigidly mounted on theaxle for controlling the position of said jaws.

3. A hand truck comprising a frame, wheels thereon, an axle for thewheels ro-- tatably mounted on the frame, gripping jaws mounted on theextended ends of the axle, outside the wheels, a pedal rigidly mountedon the axle for controlling the po sition of said jaws, andhand-operated means connected to said jaws forward of their connectionwith the axle, to adjust the positions of the j aws inrelation to eachother. 4. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted inthe frame, wheels loosely mounted on the axle, apedal rigidly mounted onthe axle, gripping jaws connected to the ends of the axle and held fromupward movement by said pedal, and means independent of said pedal andconnected to said jaws in advance of their connection with the ends'ofthe axle, to adjust the positions of the jaws toward or from each other.i V

5. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted int-heframe, wheels loosely mounted on the axle, a pedal rigidly mounted onthe axle, gripping jaws con,- nected to the ends of the axle, and heldfrom movement by said pedal, and a longitudinally movable bar mounted onthe frame, means for connecting the barto the two jaws in advance oftheir connection with theendsof the axle. i

6. A hand truck comprising a frame, an

axlerotatably mounted in the frame, wheels loosely mounted on the axle,a

ed to the ends of the axle and held from movement by said pedal,alongitudinally movable bar mounted on the frame, means for connectingthe bar to the two jaws in advance of their connection with the ends ofthe axle, a latch mechanism for holding the bar from movement, and meansfor controlling said latch mechanism.

7. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted in theframe, wheels loosely mounted on the axle, a pedal rigidly mounted onthe axle, gripping jaws connected to the ends of the axle and held frommovement by said pedal, and a spring-actuated push rod mounted on theframe and connected to said pedal.

8. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted in theframe, wheels loosely mounted on the axle, a pedal rigidly mounted onthe axle, gripping jaws connected to the ends of the axle and held frommovementby said pedal, a longitudinally movable bar mounted on theframe, means for connecting the bar to the two jaws in advance of theirconnection with the ends of the axle, a second longitudinally movablebar slldable on the frame, p'awl and ratchet connections between saidbars, a spring for the second-named bar, and means for operating thesame to disconnect said pawl and ratchet connections.

9. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted in theframe, wheels loosely mounted on the axle, a pedal rigidly mounted onthe axle, grlpping jaws connected to the ends of the axle and held frommovement by said pedal, a longitudinally movable bar mounted on saidframe, rods connecting said bar with the jaws in advance of theirconnection with said axle, and means for controlling the movement ofsaid bar to effect the adjustment of said jaws.

10. A hand truck comprising a frame, an axle rotatably mounted on theframe, spaced wheels loosely mounted onthe axle, opposed gripping jawshinged to the ends of the axle and adapted to partake of the rotarymovement therewith, a longitudinally slidable bar mounted in the frame,latch mechanism for holding the bar against sliding, links connectingthe hinged jaws to the slidable bar, and means for holding the axleagainst rotation when the truck frame is tilted rearwardly to cause thejaws to grip a load.

11. A hand truck comprising a frame having rearwardly extending bracketsat its lower ends, an axle rotatably mounted in the brackets, wheelsloosely mounted on the axle within the brackets, gripping jaws carriedby the ends of the axle and extending around the outside of the frameand bent inwardly toward each other, said jaws-being hinged to swingtransversely of the truck frame and mounted to partake of the axleofiset from one end thereof and rotatably mounted thereon, wheelslooselymounted on said axle, sockets rigidly secured to the ends of the axle,gripping aws having their rear ends mounted on pivots transversely ofthe axle and having their forward ends bent toward each other in advanceof the truck frame, a hand-operated, longitudinally slidable bar mountedin the frame, oppositely disposed, outwardly. extending links connectingthe lower end of said bar to intermediate points of the jaws, latchingmeans for holding the bar in adjusted posi tion and adapted to bedepressed by foot to permit the slidable bar to drop and the jaws toseparate and release their load.

13. A hand truck having a frame, an axle rotatably mounted thereon,wheels mounted free to rotate independently of the axle, elongatedgripping jaws hingedly mounted V at the ends of the axle to be helddepressed vance of the truck frame to sweep the floor towards each otherand engage the load.

14. A hand truck having a frame provided at its lower end with arotatably mounted axle offset in rear thereof, wheels mounted on theaxle to rotate independently thereof, gripping jaws carried by the endsof the axle and extending to the front of the truck frame and adapted tobeswung up or down by relative rotary movement of the axle and to swinginwardly or outwardly, a foot pedal mounted on the axle to prevent thesame from rotating and to hold the jaws to the floor when the frame istilted rearwardly, a pivot pin and mounted for longitudinal adjustmentin the frame, and links connecting the jaws to the pivot pin to pull thejaws toward each other during said tilting movement.

15. A hand truck having a frame provided at its lower end with arotatably mounted axle offset in rear thereof, wheels mounted on theaxle to rotate independently thereof, gripping jaws carried by the endsof the axle and extending to the front of the truck frame and adapted tobe swung an adjustable bar having teeth and mounted on the axle to up ordown by relative rotary movement of the axle and to swing inwardly oroutwardly, a foot pedal mounted on the axle to prevent the same fromrotating and to hold the jaws to the floor when the frame is tiltedrearwardly, an adjustable bar having teeth and a pivot pin and mountedfor lngitudinal adjustment in the frame, links connecting the aws to thepivot pin to pull the jaws toward each other during said tiltingmovement, a pivoted latch engaging the teeth to hold the bar inadjustment, and a longitudinal, spring-pressed rod mounted in the frameand connected to the latch, said rod having a foot piece to disengagesaid latch to permit the jaws to be adjusted to amaximum or a minimumsize load.

16. A hand truck having'a frame provided at its lower end with a,rotatably mounted axle offset in rear thereof, wheels rotateindependently jaws carried by the ends of the axle and extending to thefront of the truck frame and adapted to be swung up or down by relativerotary movement of the axle and to swing inwardly or outward ly, a footpedal mounted on the axle to prevent the same from rotating and to holdthe jaws to the floor when the frame is tilted rearwardly, an adjustablebar having teeth and a pivot pin and mounted for longitudinal adjustmentin the frame, and links conthereof, gripping necting the jaws to thepivot pin to pull the jaws toward each other during said tiltingmovement, and a longitudinal, springpressed rod connected to said footpedal and mounted in the frame to maintain the pedal in normal position.

17. A hand truck having a frame carr ing ofiset bearing brackets at thelower en an axle journaled in the bearings of said brackets, wheelsloosely mounted on the axle, hinge members secured to the ends of theaxle to rotate therewith, angular gripping jaws pivoted to the hingemembers and we tending to the front of the frame, a foot pedal securedto the shaft and adapted when held by the foot to hold the jaws to thefloor, when the frame is tilted to the rear, a spring-pressed rodmounted in the frame and connected to the pedal to normally lift thejaws when the frame is tilted, a central, longitudinal, adjustable barmounted in the frame, links connecting the jaws to the bar above theaxle to pull the active ends of the jaws inwardly to grip a. load whenthe pedal is held and the frame is tilted, and latching means forholding the central bar in adjusted position and adapted to be depressedto release the load.

In testimonythat I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto ture.

EDGAR J. BRYAN.

affixed my signa-

